Before entering elementary school, I had created a strong bond with my older brother and my neighbors who, much to my luck, were older as well. Every day when they rode the bus home from school, I would be there at the stop waiting patiently for them, my head filled with curiosity. My brother was my best friend and I couldn’t help but want to spend every moment with the older boy who had experienced so much more than I had. Every weekend we goofed around and teased each other, becoming closer and more comfortable with who we were. Eventually, my time was approaching to enter the first grade. It was an exciting new venture, but sure enough, filled with fear and anxiety. He told me school rocked! He had so many friends and they all played tag on the playground. Boy, did he give me false hope. School quickly became a nightmare for me. I entered the school like a wrecking ball; I had no reason to be self-conscious or even question simple facts about who I was by that point. I lacked the cute, curious, mousy voice all first graders had. Without my older brother’s companionship and reassurance about the situation, my attitude towards going to school changed. I quickly realized that not every one was as accepting as my loving older brother. I no longer had my best friend helping me with my every move. After learning that to the other kids I sounded like a "huge dummy", I felt alone and stupid in an environment where innocent children were supposed to be working together to make learning creative and fun. I was left thinking something was wrong with me. I believed myself to be a true outcast, until I met my speech pathologist, Mrs. DeGrooth. When I met Mrs. DeGrooth, my confidence at school grew positively. The way I interacted with others became something I no longer feared, but rather an adventure that I longed to be apart of every day at school. Mrs. DeGrooth helped me grow a voice and individual personality.
Mrs. DeGrooth took me into her classroom after careful observation of my first grade class and I continued to work with her straight through until the fifth grade twice a week. There had always been a little humor in the way I spoke, a train-wreck combination of a stutter, bad pronunciation, and overall slur. At first, my realization that I was being pulled from class made me nervous and uncomfortable. I now was fully aware that I spoke differently and it wasn’t going to slide with my peers, parents, or my teachers. "Oh great", first grade me thought, "she thinks I'm dumb too".
Mrs. DeGrooth took careful time to get to know me as an individual. She was the first person that I encountered in my elementary school years to take personal interest in my growth in language and as a person. She didn't think I was dumb; in fact, she treated me like a young adult. With each exercise she planned, my interest in learning and making myself better grew exponentially. I was pushed to excel in the pronunciation of the English language, an accomplishment no other first grader could ever compete with. She offered the personalization in lessons and comfort in class that I recognized immediately from home, something that I had not yet found in my first year at elementary school. Whenever I began to feel alone in class, I longed to be practicing my speech with her. She was my first true friend and continued to be a loyal mentor to me through out my elementary years. I didn't care that I was missing out on "fun" activities with the children my age. I became attached to the woman who wanted to help me learn with out judgment.
As I grew with Mrs. DeGrooth, she began introducing ideas of confidence and speech to me. Not only was my speech improving with every year that I met with her, but I was becoming older. Growing confidence in yourself at a young age in any form is one of the most important things in life. Twice a week, I visited Mrs. DeGrooth's small office to improve my speech and pronunciation. It helped me grow respect for myself as well as confidence in who I was. My speaking skills excelled and I was comfortable interacting and speaking my mind to other students. I stopped shying away from speaking up and grew to be more outgoing. She helped me understand my impediment and allowed me to view it as an obstacle to overcome rather than a barrier that stopped moving me forward. Mrs. DeGrooth's emotional guidance was one of the most important factors during my early development. If I had not received the individual interaction with Mrs. DeGrooth, I would most likely believe myself to be unintelligent and unworthy of other's time. She taught me that I have a voice worth hearing and has made me comfortable and confident when speaking and interacting with others. Mrs. DeGrooth may not realize it, but she left a positive impression on my every day life.
Mrs. DeGrooth took me into her classroom after careful observation of my first grade class and I continued to work with her straight through until the fifth grade twice a week. There had always been a little humor in the way I spoke, a train-wreck combination of a stutter, bad pronunciation, and overall slur. At first, my realization that I was being pulled from class made me nervous and uncomfortable. I now was fully aware that I spoke differently and it wasn’t going to slide with my peers, parents, or my teachers. "Oh great", first grade me thought, "she thinks I'm dumb too".
Mrs. DeGrooth took careful time to get to know me as an individual. She was the first person that I encountered in my elementary school years to take personal interest in my growth in language and as a person. She didn't think I was dumb; in fact, she treated me like a young adult. With each exercise she planned, my interest in learning and making myself better grew exponentially. I was pushed to excel in the pronunciation of the English language, an accomplishment no other first grader could ever compete with. She offered the personalization in lessons and comfort in class that I recognized immediately from home, something that I had not yet found in my first year at elementary school. Whenever I began to feel alone in class, I longed to be practicing my speech with her. She was my first true friend and continued to be a loyal mentor to me through out my elementary years. I didn't care that I was missing out on "fun" activities with the children my age. I became attached to the woman who wanted to help me learn with out judgment.
As I grew with Mrs. DeGrooth, she began introducing ideas of confidence and speech to me. Not only was my speech improving with every year that I met with her, but I was becoming older. Growing confidence in yourself at a young age in any form is one of the most important things in life. Twice a week, I visited Mrs. DeGrooth's small office to improve my speech and pronunciation. It helped me grow respect for myself as well as confidence in who I was. My speaking skills excelled and I was comfortable interacting and speaking my mind to other students. I stopped shying away from speaking up and grew to be more outgoing. She helped me understand my impediment and allowed me to view it as an obstacle to overcome rather than a barrier that stopped moving me forward. Mrs. DeGrooth's emotional guidance was one of the most important factors during my early development. If I had not received the individual interaction with Mrs. DeGrooth, I would most likely believe myself to be unintelligent and unworthy of other's time. She taught me that I have a voice worth hearing and has made me comfortable and confident when speaking and interacting with others. Mrs. DeGrooth may not realize it, but she left a positive impression on my every day life.